This invention relates to a steering device for an outboard motor and more particularly to an improved and simplified control device for holding the motor in a steered condition and which may be readily released or engaged without the operator having to take his hands off the tiller.
There are many instances when it is desirable to hold an outboard drive in a fixed steered position without necessitating the operator having to continually hold his hand on the tiller. Various devices have been proposed for holding the outboard drive in such steered conditions. However, the device should be such that it can be conveniently engaged and disengaged and one in which the operator may readily steer the outboard drive in the case of emergency without necessitating release of the locking mechanism through a manual operation. In the copending application entitled "Steering Device For An Outboard Motor", Ser. No. 467,304, filed Feb. 17, 1983 in the name of Eifu Watanabe, and assigned to the assignee of this application, there is disclosed an improved, simplified device for controlling the steering of an outboard motor which achieves these results.
The device shown in that patent employs a locking member which may be selectively moved by the operator between a locked position in which it will be operative to retain the motor in a steered position, and a released position wherein the motor may be freely steered. That device also includes an emergency release wherein the operator may steer the motor even when the locking member is in its engaged position under emergency conditions. Although the device shown in that patent application has numerous advantages, the operator must be in proximity to the locking device in order to move it between its engaged and disengaged positions. That is, the operator must take one of his hands from the tiller so as to move the locking device between its two positions. Furthermore, in many applications, the motor is positioned rather remotely from the operator, in the case of motors embodying such devices as elongated tillers, and this may actually necessitate the operator leaving his seat to move into proximity to the motor so as to either engage or release the steering locking device.
It is, therefore, a principal object of this invention to provide an improved steering device for an outboard motor.
It is another object of the invention to provide an improved steering device for an outboard motor that is operative to releasably restrain the motor in a steered position and which may be engaged and released from a remote position.
It is a yet further object of this invention to provide a steering locking device for an outboard motor wherein the locking device may be operated without necessitating the operator removing a hand from the tiller.